Nifty Balloon Blog

Being based in Los Angeles has a lot of perks! We are frequently contacted by television and commercial production teams looking to include balloon art in their project. Balloons add whimsy and nostalgia to any ad campaign, and we love the opportunity to work with some of the leading professionals in the media industry! Sometimes the balloons themselves have only a fleeting moment of fame, as in this Samsung commercial

Of course, even that split second of screen time is the result of hours on set and the coordinated efforts of a HUGE team of amazingly talented (and patient) professionals. And we'd be remiss if we didn't take the opportunity to snag one celebrity selfie with the voice behind the real protagonist of Disney's Frozen: the effervescent Miss Kirsten Bell!

We can't embed the video here... but check out this 2013 NFL Pepsi Rookie of the Year commercial for some more heavily featured balloons. Watching NFL quarterbacks struggle to inflate a balloon was the real perk on this project! Stick around for the blooper reel... sharp-eyed observes can catch Dave's plaid shirt (and hear his laugh) behind-the-scenes!

In addition to providing top notch entertainment at parties, David and Shana are also well known in the balloon industry for their best selling balloon instructional videos. And to promote the release of their latest video, Paradables, they are hosting a competition!

Nifty Balloons is looking for the best creation that utilizes the designs from our Masks tutorial. Show us your version of our Frankenstein, Santa, or Football Helmet – or better yet come up with your own unique sculpture based on our techniques.

Go to our Facebook page to enter the contest. Post your entry in the comments of the contest post on our page. Deadline for entry is Friday, September 2nd and the winner will be announced the following Tuesday in conjunction with the release of our brand new video:Paradables. The best mask will win its creator a free download of Paradables – valued at over $74.99! (Ooh! Aah!)

We here at Nifty Balloons believe in objectivity, so again we’re outsourcing the officiating to the pros. The judges for this contest are The Jumbo Shrimp Circus, who fittingly hired us for our first job making a Paradable in the real world at the premier of Disney's Planes movie.

NB’s Dave Brenion was in Las Vegas last week contributing his talents to a charity balloon bikini build and calendar shoot.

The event was organized by longtime friend of Nifty Balloons Tawney Bubbles in order to help benefit Cure 4 the Kids, a charity that raises money to provide medical care for children in need. According to Bubbles – who was both one of the people that built bikinis and one of the people that modeled them – the goal of Cure 4 the Kids is to ensure that ”no child is denied treatment for financial reasons.”

In addition to balloon artists from Los Angeles and Las Vegas, twisters came in all the way from Arizona, Milwaukee, New York, Canada, and Australia to help create these one-of- a-kind pieces. The wearable art was fitted on to a member of the assembled team of professional models who posed for pictures and played around Tawney’s pool and studio throughout the day.

We here at NB get asked tons of questions from our customers, friends, and even our family members (still) about this crazy, unique, and wonderful business we happen to find ourselves in. People ask us who we are, how we got into this, and they often want to hear more about all the weird little details of life in the balloon world. We’re shocked and flattered by your curiosity, so we’re starting this blog to help answer those questions that we hear most often, as well as to share photos of our favorite creations, stories from our lives, and updates on our adventures performing across the globe. Thanks for looking in on us and enjoy all the fun stuff to come! Now: up, up, and away!